The Normal Police Department and Normal West High School’s driver’s education program teamed up to host an event designed to help students make safer choices behind the wheel.
Supported by a State Farm grant, this event combined hands-on activities and emotional storytelling to teach young student drivers the risks and consequences that come with impaired and distracted driving.
Last year, Dr. Angie Codron, principal of Normal West, was approached by the town of Normal and State Farm with the idea of partnering the local police department and driver’s ed teachers for an event all about safety.
Dr. Corden later reached out to Steven Price and Curtis Brown, West’s driver’s ed coordinators, who quickly agreed to participate.
“We absolutely wanted to do it, so we could give more opportunities for students to learn and see different ways that can help them make good decisions – whether as a driver or a passenger,” said Price, who has been teaching at Normal West for 30 years.
Price applied for a grant last year through State Farm to fund activities that would teach students about safe driving in an engaging way.
The grant allowed Normal West to organize stations where students could experience the effects of driving while impaired, without ever getting behind the wheel of a car.
Students rotated through activities, such as obstacle courses using pedal carts and fatal vision goggles, to
imitate the loss of coordination caused by alcohol and drugs.
“It’s easy to say you’ll never be in those situations,” Price added, “but when you’re actually in the moment, you have to rely on the skills you’ve practiced. Hopefully, these activities help students make those decisions when it really counts.”
Officer Darien Bachman from the Normal Police Department said the event’s goal was to create a safe but memorable learning experience.
“Our goal was to create a fun and educational environment for people who are in driver’s ed to come and do a bunch of different activities and ultimately learn some of the effects of drunk driving or drugged driving,” Bachman shared.
This year’s guest speaker, Michelle Watson, shared a deeply personal story about losing her son in a crash involving drugs and alcohol.
Her message left a lasting impact on the students in attendance.
“I hope they listen to my story,” Watson said. “I try not to get all choked up, but it gets me sometimes. And I hope they take it home and talk about it at the dinner table tonight.”
For many students, the experience was eye-opening.
Brenna Burgess-Lang, a student currently enrolled in driver’s ed, gave her feelings about being on the road. She said that the event helped her gain a better understanding of what safe driving really means.
She explained that she’s “not that confident as of right now, but once I learn more, I’ll be more comfortable.”
Burgess-Lang felt that the event was really educational and gave her a different perspective on the do’s and don’ts of the road.
Over the years, Price has seen noticeable improvement in young drivers who have opportunities like this outside of driver’s ed or behind-the-wheel classes.
Price emphasized that the 9-week driver’s ed really helps young drivers deal with real-life situations on the road that they can take away for the rest of their lives.
Price explained that getting more real-world experiences prepares student drivers for the real world, as it is something they can take with them for the rest of their lives.
With the support from the Normal Police Department and State Farm, West’s driver’s ed program continues to prove that the best way to teach safety is to make it real…because when it comes to driving, one choice can change everything.
